"The last three weeks I've been out have been kind of stressful, not knowing what was going to happen and the ridiculousness of our government," said USDA employee Pat Gaines. "It's crazy. We've never encountered anything like that before."

The federal shutdown affected more than 450 employees in Mississippi. They were furloughed for nearly three weeks as the gridlock in Congress continued. Many federal offices in Jackson were closed and residents could not pay their taxes or file for Social Security benefits because of the shutdown.

"I needed a tax transcript for school and they've been shut down for like two weeks and I haven't been able to get it," said Paula Manning, who was at the McCoy Federal Building seeking documents she needed to enroll in college.

The shutdown also hurt business for restaurants in downtown Jackson.

"It really hurt us bad. It's half of our business," said Louis Bruno chef and owner of Bruno's Adobo restaurant. "Thank God they're back, but I think it's going to be a slow process for them to come back."

Furloughs were also in place for the Army Corps of Engineers and the Mississippi National Guard.

Mississippi congressmen responded to the end of the shutdown overnight. Rep. Gregg Harper, a Republican, said he was not satisfied with the agreement reached, but said it was in the best interest of the country to end the shutdown. Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Democrat, said he's pleased that House Republicans ended what he called "political gaming."

The shutdown also closed more than a dozen federal wildlife refuges in Mississippi. The facilities will be inspected and were expected to reopen within 24 hours, authorities said.

At the Vicksburg National Military Park, superintendent Mike Madell said there was a steady stream of visitors at the Civil War battlefield on Thursday and 42 furloughed employees were recalled to work.